It all started when Kool Moe Dee released the single How Ya Like Me Now (lyrics) in his 1987 album with the same title dissing LL Cool J for some Behind-The-Scenes offenses while claiming he stole his rapping style, which, interestingly, was the same excuse MC Shan used for dissing LL on his track Beat Biter.
The song contained only indirect hits to Cool J such as:
I’m bigger and better,forget about deffer
Which refered to LL Cool J’s second album Bigger and Deffer.
Other notable lines pointing at LL were:
A sucker rapper that I know I’ll serve
Run around town sayin' he is the best
Is that a test?
I’m not impressed
Get real,you’re nothin' but a toy
Which referred to how LL Cool J said he was “The Best” in the Hip Hop game.
After that LL Cool J replied with Jack The Ripper (lyrics). This song had multiple mentions of and many indirect shots at Moe Dee and MC Shan.
“How You Like Me Now” punk? You living foul
Here’s what my game is, kill is what my aim is
A washed up rapper needs a washer, my name is–
And the line which later got sampled in Kool Moe Dee’s Let’s Go (lyrics)
“How Ya Like Me Now?” I’m getting busier
I’m double platinum, I’m watching you get dizzier
Another song from the same album, Jingling Baby, also contained indirect shots at Moe Dee.
That was followed with a more aggressive reply by Kool Moe Dee titled Let’s Go (lyrics). While the other disses were very indirect, this one mentioned LL’s name multiple times and including samples of LL Cool J rapping the above mentioned lines on the track Jack The Ripper, and the famous wordplay with the letters “L.L.”:
Tryna be me, now LL stands for
Lower Level, Lack Luster
Last Least, Limp Lover
Lousy Lame, Latent Lethargic
Lazy Lemon, Little Logic
Lucky Leech, Liver Lipped
Laborious Louse on a Loser’s Lips
Live in Limbo, Lyrical Lapse
Low Life with the loud raps, boy
Immediately followed by the following lines, making for of LL’s 1985 hit single Rock The Bells (lyrics)
…Now look what you done did
just using your name I took those L’s,
hung ‘em on your head and rocked your bells…
At the same time, it also mocks Cool J’s reply to Moe Dee,
You need to sneak back to the drawing board Jack…
The Ripper, down with my zipper
You get paid to be a Moe Dee tipster
This song also mocks the style of songs and concerts that Cool J makes
Yeah you’re headstrong, but you’re dead wrong
Wanna survive? Stick with the love songs
Take off your shirt, flex and flirt
And leave the real hard rhymes to the hard rhyme experts
If you don’t, boy you’ll get hurt
Feel like dirt and have to revert
To comin' on stage butt naked
To make up for what you can’t do on record
Referring to how Cool J likes to show his body in his concerts
To conclude, as in many other tracks, Moe Dee always challenged LL in a rap battle so he could “prove who’s better” as shown in this line:
Put up or shut up, get up, yeah what up?
Huh, get on the microphone and get cut up
Talk about how your records went double platinum
With those lyrics?! Huh, I laugh at them
So you got paid, take the money you’ve made
Bet it on yourself, are you afraid?
3 years later, in 1990, LL Cool J released the album titled Mama Said Knock You Out which contained 2 tracks dissing Kool Moe Dee (with a bonus of Ice T and MC Hammer).
The first track was called To Da Break of Dawn (lyrics). The first verse of the song was aimed at Moe Dee, witht he most notorious lines:
Wouldn’t bite because your rhymes are puppy chow
Made another million, so competators bow
Homeboy, hold on, my rhymes are so strong
Nothing could go wrong, so why do you prolong
Songs that ain’t strong, brother, you’re dead wrong
And got the nerve to have them Star Trek shades on
Mentioning the trademark sunglasses that Kool Moe Dee wears
The second song, had the same title as the album. Mama Said Knock You Out (lyrics). It also contained a lot of indirect hits to Moe Dee such as
And when I pull out my jammy get ready cause it might go
BLAAAAW, how ya like me now?
And
Shadow boxing when I heard you on the radio
I just don’t know
What made you forget that I was raw?
But now I got a new tour
The final song dissing LL Cool J was Death Blow (lyrics). Without even entering in lyric analysis,the official video of the song is a parody of the Mama Said Knock You Out (lyrics) video.
The song contained samples of To Da Break of Dawn (lyrics) while ridiculing it’s lyrics
Me and you, face to face, head to head
Mic to mic, I like the weak shit you said
To the break of dawn, beats nitro
Lyrics weak, say goodnight ‘cho
Star Trek shades, man cut the joke
Let’s get serious and go for broke
It also went into a more aggressive tone than any of the disses before
Cause I’m a whip you like your daddy, beat ya like a baby
Sick ya like a dog, dropping lyrics wit rabies
Cut ya like a knife cause you’re nuthin but hype
You slice and dice and ice twice for life
I’m a treat ya like a hooker punk, change your clothes
Put you on the streets wit ya jingling hoes
And
My lyrical beatdown will leave ya in a coma
Cause you can’t hang without a high school diploma
Referring to Cool J dropping high school to pursue his rapping career.
And sorry if this is long but it’s all made out of awesomeness
So who’s got no style, look at your profile
You can’t dance, can’t dress and you’re so foul
Still wearing played out 4 finger rings
Played out fat gold chains and things
You changed your look now change your gameplan
Trying to dress but you still wear name brand
Brother, you look crazy weak
And it gets worse when we hear you speak
So you ain’t got a chance in hell
You’ll be known as the late LL
The man who lost one, one too often
Came wit a soft one and went to his coffin
A close casket they won’t show ya
When I finish, you’re mama won’t know ya
Cause I’m a rip you limb from limb
You tombstone read he had no win
So RIP, Rest in peace, rip ‘em
D.I.D., dead indeed, did 'em
A H-I-T, hitman, so whatcha hit 'em wit
A rhyme silencer, I hit 'em wit a death blow
Then the song started replying to LL’s diss song Mama Said Knock You Out (lyrics) with lines like
If mama said knock me out, come do it
You can’t win and that (record scratch) knew it
And to conclude the song, he added a remixed version of his LL wordplay from his song Let’s Go (lyrics)
Because I’m a rock up L
Low life loser, life like luna
Lafidasical, lispless luna
Tic liver lifeless, living likeness
Lusting longing lyrics like this
Little league, lard larsonist liar
Label ledger, left the leper liar
Bull, lull, lateral learning
Laps language latent lurking
Language, language, local logo
Light laboring, limited local
Now LL’s a laughing stock
Cause I bit that ass to the last stop
The last diss was added by LL Cool J in 1995. The controversial song I Shot Ya (lyrics), was also taken as a diss my 2Pac after being shot.
In this song, the whole last verse was aimed at Moe Dee
Uh-uh-uh-oh, lookin kinda leary
Ya clique thought I fell off, they didn’t wanna hear me
Oh really, now teel me how long have you been whinin?
Sixteen years, twenty million albums, yeah you’re climbin
I love your joint Rock The Bells, it was mad hot
Ya record ‘bout the Radio was blowin up my spot
My girl was on your chip when you flipped I Need Love
Your backseat countset was mad butter, son
I loved your boomin system it was wicked as could be
You bad, now I’m writin on your pink cookies
And you had me screamin Mama Said Knock Ya Out
Ya jinglin, baby, no doubt
Uh, talk to me (what, what, uhh, uhh) become a zombie, walk to me
Ain’t a MC alive who fought with me
#In my opinion
Even if Moe Dee replied only with Let’s Go (lyrics), he still would’ve won. Though this is only my opinion since Let’s Go (lyrics) is my favorite diss of all time. On a lyrical level, Moe Dee is just too high up compared to LL Cool J.
